NEWS

SatCen and OPCW sign a new Service Level Agreement

On 8 March 2018, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and the European Union Satellite Centre signed a Service Level Agreement implementing Council Decision (CFSP) 2017/2303 supporting the OPCW Fact Finding Mission in Syria.

Capitalizing on OPCW’s experience of SatCen support provided in 2014 and 2015, the Centre will carry out tasks related to the assessment of the road network, facilities and site surroundings, the verification of Syrian reports and the reinforcement of situational awareness provided to deployed inspection and verification teams.

The services are expected to last 12 months. Apart from IMINT/GEOINT products and services, SatCen is to provide imagery analysis training to OPCW staff.

The agreement was signed by Mr Marc Van Dyck, Head of Operations and Administration, on behalf of OPCW Director-General H.E. Mr Ahmet Üzümcü, and SatCen Director Pascal Legai.

‘The cooperation with the EU SatCen will enable the OPCW to enhance its capability to conduct non-routine missions and contribute to the efforts of OPCW to free the world of chemical weapons’, said Mr Marc Van Dyck during the signature ceremony.